building a bale processor

[Renze]

My last project was building a front loader... Now when it's done, i have the ability to handle large 3'x4'x8' square straw bales very easily, which are a lot less work to stack and put under a tarp, than to put a couple of hundred small square bales on the attic.
The best thing would be to shred these bales to make the manual cleaning of stables a lot easier.

The Teagle bale shredders, if you can find one, are at least 4500 Euro. The French type of bale shredder, with a loosening drum and a radial turbine blower, are even more expensive.
When i went searching the net, i found the Haybuster ( Untitled Document ) website, which gave me new insight, as there arent any bale shredders of this type available in Europe.

Meanwhile i collected the parts needed to build a bale processor bit by bit: I bought a 3pt hitch feeder bucket for 250 Euro (with a loading comb on the back, and a side delivery slatted conveyor and a dosing drum on the side) This feeding bucket gave me all the necessary parts for the bottom slatted conveyor, with hydro drive motor.
Last wednesday i picked up the other half of my new to build machine: a JF straw chopper, which is a flail mower with straight (mower type) blades and two combs which act as counterknives, mounted under the rotor cover. on the rear, there is a spread plate with about 10 adjustable vanes, to spread the chopped material.

This machine is from the mid 70's and was designed to chop and spread a straw swath in the field. Because most combines have a built in straw shredder nowadays, these tractor mounted straw spreaders are obsolete.

The plan is to dismantle the feeder bucket and mount sprockets, drive motor etcetera to a new to build frame, and mount the straw chopper in front of it, turned over so that the straw is thrown upwards instead of to the rear.
Then i need to build a funnel and a spout, to dispose the straw into a wheelbarrow with side extensions.


I tested the chopper yesterday by heaping half a bale in front of the stable door and driving over it. I was statisfied with the general condition of the machine i bought, and even more with the delivered product: shred straw of 7 to 12 cm length. It is short enough to make manure handling easy, ad long enough to stay where it is, without the horses digging to the concrete floor.

The major disadvantage was the barn turning blue from the dust that this machine threw up, hence the need for a wheelbarrow with side extensions, so i can shred the bale outside and then drive it into the barn with the wheelbarrow, to keep the dust outside.

I will post some pics of the feeder bucket and straw chopper one of these days.
I've got two parts donors i need, so i can start the actual build now.